The S&P 500 was up 0.1% to 3,674.16 in midday trading.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.6% to 30,057.62.
The Nasdaq climbed 0.5% to 12,404.32.
The yield on a 10-year Treasury bond decreased 2.8% to 0.921%.
Oil climbed 0.7% to $45.58 a barrel.
The price of gold was up 0.5% to $1,839 an ounce.
RESTAURANTS
Orange County restaurant stocks were up during Thursday midday trading along with the S&P 600 restaurant index, which was up 3.4% to 1,730.09.
Gains were led by Irvine-based Kura Sushi USA Inc. (Nasdaq: KRUS), which rose 5.8% to $18.31 and a $153 million market cap. BJ’s Restaurants Inc. (Nasdaq: BJRI) of Huntington Beach climbed 3.3% to $36.25 and an $809 million market cap; and Costa Mesa-based El Pollo Loco Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: LOCO) increased 4.6% to $16.80 and a $612 million market cap.
MEDICAL DEVICES
Avid Bioservices Inc. (Nasdaq: CDMO) climbed 13% to $10.76 and a $609 million market cap. The Tustin-based contract biologics manufacturer on Dec. 1 declared a 65-cent cash dividend for its 10.5% Series E Convertible Preferred stock. The dividend is equivalent to an annualized 10.5% per share.
